 Agriculture on the move. Agriculture on the move. Agriculture on the move. Agriculture on the move. Hello again, St. Lucia, and welcome to the program, Agriculture on the Move. My name, Philip Sidney, your host. Today we have a very interesting program, and we are talking about epiculture. For those of you who don't know what that term means, it's called the Raring of Bees. And we'll also be talking about the International Bee Day on the 20th of May, which is Friday. With me are three guests, and I'll allow them to introduce themselves, and I'm starting with the lady to my right. Tell us who you are. Good day, everyone. My name is Karis Ogis, Team Leader for Epiculture, Ministry of Agriculture. I work in the Veterinarian Livestock Services Division. Great. Next person. Yes, Emmanuel Stanislaus. Thank you very much, Mr. Sidney, and the Ministry of Agriculture Livestock Division for having us here and allowing us this opportunity. I represent the East, which is the Eastern Epiculture Sustainability Team. It's the acronym EAST. It not only identifies where we are, but also what we are about. Okay, great. Well, I'm Kojak Rehman from Aurora Bee Cluster. I'm the president right now of the team, and we're here to assist in whatever way is possible in this discussion. Great. Well, welcome to the program, Lady and Gentleman. Thank you. I want it to be a very interesting program. I know people out there looking forward. They need to know what's happening in the Epiculture industry in St. Lucia. So, Karis, I'll start with you. Since it is on Friday, it is a national bidet. What is the significance of that day? Let's go back to history. The nectar of the gods. The nectar of the gods? Yes. Explain that. Ancient Egypt. That was the gold of the day. Only high society persons had access to honey. They would bathe in honey. They would use it for so many different things, medicinal property. So now St. Lucia is highlighting the nectar of St. Lucia, which is the gold of agriculture. So in that day, there will be hosting different activities to make awareness of the Epicultures to St. Lucia and the whole, because many people just use honey just to sweeten their tea. Or if we have a cold, our grandmothers used to be mixing honey with lime. We want to take it to a different level. Scientific, innovation, educational, health, because health is wealth. Bees contribute so much to our agricultural sector. In a discussion before the show, we highlighted that in a plate of food, out of four things, bees contribute to something on our plate. So we need to take that very seriously. Climate change is affecting bees. The education need to go out there. Very good, very good. I'm very happy because we need to sensitize the public in that regard. I remember years ago, maybe you're going to look to this. You had elderly folks, who were the ones involved in bee production. It was not at that level. They used to go to the trees and extract honey and stuff like that. But right now, it is gold. And we need to treat it scientifically. As you said, I'm in agreement with you in that regard. We need to move forward. It's now an industry and it's world wide. The economic surface is very, very high. So we need to treat it because the impact on our economy is very, very, very necessary. So from your end, tell us how about your cluster, your group from the east. So in the, well, the January Mabuya Valley area, we actually are responsible for a lot of the production of honey on the island. But that has been not just now, but tradition and historically. And after the breakdown of some of the other bee associations that existed at once upon a time, a lot of those older beekeepers had nowhere to be identified. And there's never that kind of coming together since the demise of those other bee groupings. So there's been a need for that collaboration and so on in terms of the coming together of beekeepers, just not only for ourselves, but also for the sustainability of the sector and the art of beekeeping to be handed down from one generation to the next. And not only that, the valley, where we call the valley, Mabuya Valley, is home to the south of Louis Community College agricultural station that as the practical, the field component is actually housed there. We also have a secondary school in that area and several primary schools. So we are in the process actually of engaging south of Louis to allow us to have an apparel on the college property. So as to allow that aspect of bee apiculture being introduced to the students there. So then that is part of our vision in the short term. In the medium term, we're looking at procurement and recruitment of materials that is an equipment for beekeeping and also to have the marketing of our honey be more improved upon and so. And in the long term, we have a bees for bananas project to embark upon. Bees for bananas? Bees for bananas. And as you know, A is for apiculture, not apples now. E is for apiculture and bees for bananas, not the letter B. But B-E-S, right? And there's a need right now as we know the impact that the banana industry has had economically. Well, that is in a beneficial way on the island. But there has also been a negative environmental impact over the years coming out from the current management practice of banana production. And so there is need for some environmental revitalization in those lands. So we in the East have realized that apiculture could answer a lot of those questions, both on an environmental level and economic level, in terms of livelihoods and so on in that area. So we already possess among us some of the beekeepers who were once banana farmers. And I've found lucrative sustenance in apiculture. And some of them have even left banana farming. And they're now full-time beekeepers. So we are going to expand on that story to show that there could be more of that happening within the banana sector. Where farmers can, banana farmers that can not only diversify from bananas but around bananas using apiculture. And while at the same time, implementing a lot of the environmental standards. Friendly, yes. That in the banana farming, that would be helpful and conducive to the best. Good one. So that is part of just in a nutshell what we are talking about. Well said, Mr. Manuel. I like that. Thank you very much. Mr. Coach, I'll tell us about your section. Well, a rural bee cluster, first I would like to say, rural means the northern lights. So we at Arua, our goals are big. But we are starting off very small. We envision to take this sector to the next level. Like Mr. Manuel shared, we also have plans to adopt a school because we want apiculture to not just be how it has been. It hasn't gotten the amount of coverage that we think it should be getting. So we want to also invite young people. We also want to make apiculture in a light that even college graduates can actually desire to be beekeepers. We want to bring this out in a job fair. When we have job fairs, Arua will be there to actually sensitize young people to take up apiculture as also a business. We've had a few challenges, but the challenges are not going to overcome our dreams. We are going to overcome the challenges. We're going to put everything behind, and we're going to move our best foot forward. There's money to be made. There is so much things when it comes to bee, like Misogis explained. I think every three out of every four items on your plate has some involvement of the bee in it. So we really want the apiculture business to take off, take flight. We're looking at to go locally. We want to target regionally, and we want to hit the international markets likewise. So we're thinking big. How many farmers are involved with it? Right now, we are at 56. We have a membership of 56 members. And exactly where are you all located? Geographically. We span from Grozile, the Norfordie Island, all the way to Dennery. So we have a wide cluster of members at different locations. And also, we're working. Misogis, tell us the ministry's involvement in assistance to the farmers. OK. One of our work plan, we started from 2019 seeing the needs of the farmers to come together. Presently, there are about 245 bee farmers acknowledged by the ministry and growing. So you find it's really difficult for us to address everybody one time. So we helped the farmers create clusters. In enabling work duties to be carried out better. More efficiently. Yes. So how many groups are there in all? There are eight groups. We have the East Aurora, persons of farmers with disabilities. We have IAC, the Southern Apiculture Group, the Southwest Coast Apiculture Group. We have Milfler, which is the oldest bee keeping cluster. We have Horizon Brothers. And we have, did I leave anybody out? I don't think so. I don't think so. That would be bad on my part. So what sort of assistance do you offer? We offer technical assistance. For example, we go out to extension services, which is data collection if a farmer needs help in any way necessary. We respond to, we get farmers on ground in situations where we have hives in houses, hives in ministries. We get the farmers to go out there. We give training. The last training was done in 2019. And then afterwards, we had COVID, so that pushed back our abilities. But we have training coming up. Right now, we're under the South East Coast project. And we have a training starting June. And we have another one slated for the North, which would come in later during the year. We do pot surveillance on honey. So people sometimes try to bring in the honey through their bags or try and pass it off. Why is it because of the demand that's there for honey? In St. Lucia, because I know the honey is a bit scarce now, and the price keeps going up and up and up. Because I remember some years ago, the price was, I mean, $10 a bottle, right? Now it's about $70 a bottle now. In some cases, $80. $80? Oh, yes. So it's a business? Yes, there is a business. But we do the prohibitation for the health of our bees. Yes, I know. We don't have these foreign diseases like American foul brood. And the Varuna mite? Varuna mite is here, and we're trying to regulate it. That is being done through proper husbandry practices, along with chemicals, medicinal chemicals that is used on farms. So you have your AP strips. And right now, there's a new product which is more natural and be friendly. And we're trying to introduce it through the arm of EECA and AP Carribee. OK, all right. And with the Varuna mites, there are a list of other secondary conditions which bees can get. So the ministry now have enough manpower to go out and assist. I know at one time you only had one man. Yes. So right now, I heard that you have a few more people now. Yes, we have a few more people now. There's one man at a time. And now there's one woman. No, there's no one. No, I heard that they are quite simple. But anyway, we will come back to that. We'll do for our first break, OK? OK. You're watching agriculture on the move. Stay tuned. Don't go away. Back soon. Sweeteners and colors, too. We consume and we don't spare a thought for the damage that they'll do. No. Think about the children. Think about the children. How will we save them? Chemicals and GMOs are not the solution. Use organic enjoyment. Excessive agrochemical use, additives, and genetically modified foods are harmful to health and the environment. Join the Good Food Revolution. Grow, buy, and consume organic. A message from Rye St. Lucia and the Ministry of Sustainable Development with funding from the GEF Small Grants Program, UNDP. The Good Food Revolution. Welcome back to the program, Agriculture on the Move. We are discussing apiculture. And of course, we have three persons here. We have, of course, Ms. Oguiz from the ministry, Mr. Emmanuel from the east. The man from the east. The group from the east. There is from the east, that's where you see the star, right? And of course, from the north. We have Mr. Koja. Moving forward, what are the challenges that you all face as farmers in the beekeeping operations? Anyone of you? Well, some of the challenges our members have faced, one is the importation of supplies. I think we need government to come in a little better in terms of getting some of those products. I know now they're trying to put in the duty-free aspect for bee supplies. That's one of the challenges. We don't have most of the times and the costs of it. It's extremely expensive to be able to put up one hive. Something like an excluder may cost you one extra, maybe like $60. And you look at the frame, one frame total together is like $18. So put one frame in one of those hives, you may have 10 frames. It depends on the farmer's preference. So that's really settled. You're getting that assistance from government. Well, yes. I think right now, based on what Ms. Oguiz said to us, they are putting things in place that we'll be able to get. Once we lay the refresh, we'll be able to put that in and we can get those duty-free on those products. The second thing that really humbled us is even during the lockdown, during corona, I don't think enough sensitization was placed in terms of the different stakeholders. A lot of bee farmers had issues navigating from their homes to the aprons. Some of them had passes from Nemo and even from the ministry and were stopped by the police because the bee farmers were not really recognized. Recognized in Senusha. So we need them to know the importance of a bee farmer. That's why we at Aurora, we also want to go to the schools so we can get young people, even some, because you may have children that are not academically inclined and then the hands are theirs, they can go into bee farming and make a living for themselves. There is a huge market out there. You just need to tap into those sources and get those things going. We at Aurora also, we want to work with the ministry and government to recognize a no chemical day because we find the excessive use of pesticides and weedy sites actually affecting our bees. So we want to voice that out that we can have one day where everyone can acknowledge today if we're going to use anything, it must be be friendly. Friendly, environmentally friendly. Environmental friendly because the impact on our bees is great because one bee travel at a three mile radius, they cover six miles and a bee leave the hive 15 times for the day. It visited about 100 flowers per flight. So that one bee does 1500 flowers for the day. So that's to show you and one pound of bees like 3000 bees. So when you have one pound of bees, it's actually 3000 bees. So imagine 3000 bees leaving that hive, jamming out the amount of flowers they have to cover. And that's important. Then the importance of the bees, you'll understand that I was saying earlier on in the States, I mean, large agricultural farms are growing kukubits like pumpkins and watermelon. They would hire beekeepers to install the IPRI right on farm and that would increase production. Pollination is key. We want to go that route also to see if we can work with a few farmers where we can actually bring one or two hives on the farms to pollinate them. We want them to actually take note. Look at before we got in our hive and after. Look at your production, look at the amount of crops you derive after you have used one of our hives in terms of pollinating. The other thing we need to look at right now, apiculture is not a hobby anymore. It's a business. And I want to tell us here the economics. I mean, what are the returns? I don't know if you can give that so that people out there can see even if you are to work, you can still have apiris, right? And to do beekeeping, to bring that extra income, all right? So this is important. Okay, for apiculture, it is more intensive under harvesting. So having one of the livestock ventures that is more easier for somebody, especially retirees, we get a lot of retirees when to go into apiculture. It's less labor intensive. You visit your farm every two weeks. Sometimes you can, if you're working efficiently, you can leave it for three weeks. So you don't have that much cost of transportation going there every day. So you don't have to put in lines, you don't have to do anything. So the bees are working for you? Yes, they are workers. So you have your bees doing their thing, you go in to do your proper husbandry and monitoring of your bees. The work comes in harvesting. That's why the sting comes too. You get stings for your money. Emerson. So. Only sweet pain. So it is more intensive. Then you have to get laborers to help you because honey is heavy. And then you have to spin to extract. And then after that process, you have to bottle and label and so on. That is really intensive. So towards the higher cost of apiculture is the importation, as he said. Because it was recognized as flooring by customs. But having engaged our peers and speaking with him, he understood. Because sometimes they don't really understand dialogue, miscommunications, and so on. You have to explain. So customs understand certain things. And our peers work for us to explain and bring out what the farmers need. Is there a cost of production that you'll have written to see I'm expending X and I'm getting X in return? OK. If you have a hive, at the end of the year, if you purchase your hive, we just put in it as purchase. Because sometimes you go out and you get your bees and so on. If you purchase your full-fledged hive, you spend about one to now, you would get back at least, let's say, 80% of what you spend at the end of your year. If you have successfully had two crops within the honey flow, and if your management practices are OK, you probably harvest a good harvest is about five to six gallons before we would get more. Right now, it is low, especially those that are coming in. They get about two gallons. But they would still recover at least $1,000 from the money they have spent. So there is money to be made? Yes. Let us look at the collaborations of other agencies. I know Jeff. I must mention Jeff, because as I familiar with Mr. Rumeles, I think he has done a fantastic job in ensuring that this industry is continuing at a level. You know, they are sticking it from one level, because he keeps saying, it's not honey alone. It's true. I mean, you allow the proper listen, you know, and the other one is the epitoxin that he mentioned. So we are moving. And what I'm happy about is this research center, they are building down at Makote in VFO. You know, and that is very, very interesting. And I'm seeing young people now, me, because you see, young people want to see, you have the sexy of the thing. So they can get enticed. They have enticed them. And I think going that way with the Makote Epiculture Research Learning Institute, that's a fantastic job. And I really want to applaud Mr. Jazz Rumeles from Jeff for such an initiative. And I think there are other agencies like ICA. Yes. ICA also has Epicaribe, which is a foundation between Argentina's inclusion, ICA to get beekeepers training and equipment at a lower cost, because sometimes it can be expensive, but an exchange of knowledge also. We also had SSDF, which was a key player in the farmers with disabilities. We cannot forget our disabled persons. And we also had collaborations with other agencies that support not dominantly, but whenever farmers export sentries, that's the one I was missing. They have the BCT project. We were on board with them doing surveillance. That's why we know how many farmers we have on ground and increased. And they're looking at helping farmers expand, because we have a honey facility in Denry. Is that operational? It's not. But we're looking at export. That's where I suppose you're coming, right? Yes. You all should be able to get involved with that. So how often are you with this project, Dong Le? Well, that since it has been constructed, it has never really been, you know, in operation. In operation, which is nice. But there's much that can be said about it. But nonetheless, it is one of the components of our vision as well, to really operationalize this facility. How many members are in your group, Dong Le? We currently have 25 registered members and other enthusiasts willing to join. So those are active members? Active members, currently. And you all meet regularly? Yes, we have our periodic meetings and then the set meetings for at least once every quarter. And of course, as the need arises, throughout the months, the quarter, we would of course call impromptu meetings. What are your constraints on that? We have, as you mentioned, just going back, adding one little thing to one of the list of challenges as you asked the question again. We have suffered some pretty a loss in the last, and that is a recent thing. We have over the past couple of years, I mean, I've been keeping bees for over 10 years and it's within the last two years is the first time that we have had instances of people going into hives, harvesting your honey, going away with your friend, taking out your trained bees from your box, and then finalizing the area and so on. We have gone into a strong statement out there to the public to let them know that this is happening and it is totally unacceptable. Right, as my good colleague said earlier, there's a lot of investment going into that. And of course, understanding the importance of bees, I don't even want to hear people destroying bees in their homes. I'll rather them call me and tell them to take it out. Let alone to come into my area and destroy my bees. That is totally unacceptable. So there's a need for security measures to be placed in other areas, at least surveillance cameras. Yes, yes. At the start, you know. And what you all need to do to resolve your neighborhood watch, your farmer watch. Yes. That's another thing to probably put in place. I mean, the Pre-Alasini unit is there, but I suppose they cannot be everywhere. They cannot be everywhere. So I think that's what I think. One of the things I forgot to mention too on the giles, there was our first honey show. Right. Yes, and I mean, that was an eye opener. And I think, you know, moving forward, I'm sure, you know, the standard, the quality, all of these things we have to look at in terms of when you mentioned about, you know, your markets, you know, local, regional, and international. That's the standard we have to have set. So I really want to thank Robilus in that regard and of course, Ex-Wolcen Luscia. We are just about to close. Tell us about your bidet. Okay. Quickly, you have one minute. We commemorate will bidet on Friday, the 20th of May. We'll be having an activity at Tissue Culture that is in Union. At 10 a.m., we have a little ceremony, but the main attraction is the highlight of The Beekeepers, which start from one to three o'clock. And we like the community. Ex-Wolcen Luscia come out and see the products that's there, the different things farmers can do and meet The Beekeepers because we are a small community. Come in there, you recognize a beekeeper, you'll know, okay, this is where the honey is coming from instead of somebody that haven't worked and went to the hive and just take honey. So come be engaged, learn something, and we need other sources of income. So come and learn about api culture. Beautiful, well said. I would like to thank you for being here because you have come to the end of the program. Thank you, Ms. Oguiz, thank you, Ms. Emmanuel, and thank you, Ms. Akucha, for being here, and I wish you all success. Take it to the next level. Yes, thank you. You have been watching Arriculture on the Move. Thank you for viewing the program. And remember, Arriculture is our business. Eat fresh. Tissue is the best. I'm Philip Sidney. Goodbye. Arriculture on the Move.